Yogi: When I’m aware of grief and anxiety, I’m detached from them. I fear that it’ll also happen to the compassion I have for the people close to me.

When I’m detached from those who’re sick, the compassion has a different flavor than the usual. Perhaps I don’t know what compassion is. 

Sayadaw: It’s a different level of compassion. What we’re used to experiencing as compassion is mixed with suffering. That suffering bit is actually aversion because we don’t want things to be that way – we would like things to be fine.

There is the wishing well for others, but also there is the non-acceptance of the situation or grief. So, it is mixed.

When there is pure compassion, compassion is a wholesome mind, then it will feel good.

The mind understands that there is suffering going on, but it is not suffering together with it.

Yogi: The confusion is because the ‘I’ is not much there anymore, I was afraid I would lose compassion for myself and others. I don’t have to be afraid of that.

Sayadaw: When there is more ‘I’, there is more unwholesome and the mind experiences more of the grief. Compassion alone has no sense of suffering in it.